GQEBERHA – Two men, aged 40 and 41, face fraud and money laundering charges after being served with summonses by the Gqeberha Hawks Serious Commercial Crime Investigation on 19 October over an alleged fraudulent Road Accident Fund (RAF) claim valued at R7 932 713.

According to the Hawks spokesperson Warrant Officer Ndiphiwe Mhlakuvana, the case involves allegations of fraud, money laundering and making a false statement in support of a purported motor vehicle accident claim.

“The summons follows an investigation into allegations that false information was submitted to RAF to secure substantial financial compensation for injuries allegedly sustained in a motor vehicle accident that reportedly never occurred.”

According to the allegations, Mhlakuvana said the purported accident occurred on 31 October 2022 at Koyana Road in Veeplaas, Gqeberha, and was described as a hit-and-run incident.

“Based on the alleged representations, a law firm lodged a claim with RAF on behalf of the claimant for R7 932 713 in September 2023,” he said. “The claim reportedly included compensation for general damages, future medical expenses and future loss of earnings allegedly arising from the purported accident.”

Mhlakuvana added that one of the suspects is alleged to have falsely presented himself as an independent eyewitness to the incident and deposed an affidavit purporting to corroborate the circumstances of the accident.

“The affidavit was subsequently submitted to RAF in support of the compensation claim,” he said. “RAF picked up discrepancies in the claim submitted and it was repudiated, prompting the matter to be handed over to the Hawks for investigation.”

Mhlakuvana confirmed that investigations further alleged that “the claimant and the eyewitness acted in collusion, with a common purpose to misrepresent the circumstances under which the claimant sustained his injuries.”

He added that the allegations suggest that the claimant purportedly claimed to have been injured in a motor vehicle accident when the injuries were allegedly sustained after he fell or jumped from a high fence.

“Road Accident Fund nearly suffered a loss of over R7.9 million from the claim lodged.”

He added that the suspects face allegations of fraud, money laundering and making a false statement.

“They are expected to make their first court appearance at the New Law Courts in Gqeberha on Monday, 26 October,” he concluded.

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